Changed my Mind

I was just going to use the letter as my blog post this week, but I changed my mind.

Anyways, where to begin? Well, on monday I went home for the day to try and replace all my ID cards and such. It was extremely anoying to have to do it, but hey. I saw a few friends and managed to squeeze enough knowledge out of my brain to talk my dad into loaning me the money for a new camera. So I now own a Canon 40D. Yes yes I know, it's a canon not a nikon. It was a hard decision, and I would not say that I am completely happy with it, but I really didn't want to get the same one as I had before, or the one that was a step up, because if I do get my other one back then I will have two that are basicly the same. And the one that I did want would of sucked my bank account dry, and I needed to buy a flash with it to make it even work which in total would of come to over $2000. so that was upsetting, but hey. I'm happy with the canon for now. I've found it usefull as the week has moved on because jordan and phil both have canon's and have been able to help me out with figuring my way around the camera. So that's been really cool. Here's a pict of me with it.

This week we had class again. We had Old Testament which was actually interesting. And our prof was so cool! I found a lot of information helpfull. Our exam was quite hard and im pretty sure I bombed it, but I'm praying that I will still pass the class. It was a really cool week though. That's the class I've been waiting for to help me with my biblical knowledge. I've been kind of bored this week I dont know why, but I cant seem to entertain myself outside of homework. So that's when I decided to pick up my camera and try to shoot the amazingly beautiful moon that was outside reflecting off the ocean. I was failing at capturing it, so phil and I went out after worship and he changed 80 million things on my camera, andlet me use his freakishly amazing lense that I want, and I got the shot. Here's a pict of it below. That made my night to know that my camera can do something like that with a few changes.

Youth this week was sweet. I absolutely love my youth group and I'm going to be heartbroken when I have to leave them. This week we went to a member of the churches house to play rockband. I decided to spice things up a bit by dressing up. I kind of scared the kids at first, but then they started to get into the game of me and my costume, and were hanging out with me as I danced like a crazy person. That was a lot of fun.

Keep me and the thief in your prayers, I really want to find this person and try to help her regain her true being, and I'm pretty sure that that is impossable. And she just needs prayer, for it has been shown that God wants to to something with this thief, and now it's a matter of keeping her in our prayers so God can keep on changing her lifestyle. Through this I can see great things happening.

This week not much is exciting, we were supposed to go snow camping, but mount washington decided not to have enough snow anymore, so we are having another guys/girls night. Iwas kind of upset about that because I was really looking forward to being together as a group, but oh well. Im sure it will be fun. Other than that all that we are really doing is homework. So pray that I will be able to keep my focus, cause I need it right now. Umm...other than that, not much is new or is about to go on. Hope your week is a good one, and I will hope to talk to you sometime. See ya!

Missions Fest!!!!!!

Hey hey everyone. What a week this was. I'm almost amazed at how much someone can do in a week. It started out with finnishing up the prayer room and heading into a hectic week. We had class monday and tuesday which was sweet, didn't do much on monday but I did finally spill out the fact that I was feeling left out of the kaleo group a lot. During worship there was a time for sharing, so I finally piped up and let it all out. After that I felt a lot better knowing that the truth was out. On tuesday we had a fireside (which if you do not remember what that is it's when we go to random staff members houses) I went to Isaac's house, allthough he had forgotten about the fireside, so we went to coffee on the moon and super store. It was me, deb, and Aaron. It was fun! Wed we had a crazy day. It was finally time for someone to share her story. It was hard, and a long one, but she did a really good job in getting the courage to let it out. Then the new york team had a meeting with 2 special guests....KIM AND KIM!!!!! Then came from NY to do some stuff here in canada and speak to us. I miss them SO much and was SO happy to see them again. After that I did a bit of homework then hit a yearbook meeting where we were presented with our team shirts!!! They are SO amazing. Jordan did a really good job on them. Then later on that night me and Amelia had a chat. It was really good. It was good to be able to see eye to eye with someone about some things and such. I really enjoyed talking to her. Here's a pict of the shirt by the way. Then it was time to pack up and head to.......MISSIONS FEST!!!!!

So my time at missios fest was both rewarding and painful. It started out fine, I was using crutches because my knee cap moved and that caused my leg to swell and have a lot of pain. So that was the first adventure. When we got there we went shopping and such and hung out at the church that we were sleeping at and went to bed. The next morning we woke up and went to a muslum mosque (dont know if I spelt that right) That was interesting. We were all shocked at how close to christianity it was. Then we were driving to a temple when the van needed gas. So we (jordans van) start to turn into the gas station and BAM! we hit a car that tryed to drive past jordan as we swerved out a bit to make the corner. So that was umm....for me scary seeing as crashes are my biggest fear in life, but for others interesting I guess. Although Jordan was not the slightest bit impresses hahaha. Then we got to the temple, listened to a guy with a strong accent talk about cow poo and pray in a different language. It was scary and you could feel the bad spirits around the room. But hey, at the end of it we got samosas!!! Hahaha Then it was time to hit the real missions fest. it was really neat. I went to a youth rally that was amazing and hung around looking at booths, met up with friends, and got a surprise visit from a friend back home!

The next day started out fine, woke up, packed up, went to missions fest, went to a session about God's daughters praying, met up with friends, went for lunch, and then the crazyness began. My camera bag is huge, and really heavy. Walking with crutches with that on your back is hard. So I set it down behind the qwanoes booth and went around with friends to the booths and such. Then we went into the hall and waited for another friend to come. When we found her I went back in to get my bag cause I wanted my camera.....and it was gone. After finding out that no one at the booth saw it, no one had turned it in, and it was not with me I went to security. At this moment I have lost basicly $3000 worth of camera gear, an ipod, bible and note books, and many other small items. Some one stole it, and I dont know if I will ever get it back. This has crushed me. Driving back to the ferry after missions fest I started crying again, and Alivia was rubbing my shoulder and Jordan was causiously whispering to Jen that I was crying and it was kinda funney, cause no one there has ever really seen me cry before. I cryed a total of 5 times that day, and the last time was crying myself to sleep. It really felt good to be able to cry again and not really hide it. Though I feel sorry for Jordan cause I was right behind him, and I was kinda loud hahaha. Anyways, that's why I have no pictures of missions fest. They are stolen. I'm asking for prayer for an answer to this situation. And for my heart to feel better cause I'm pretty angry at myself for not thinking twice when I was leaving my bag there. Other than that I had a great time.

This week we have classes again, and I am heading home for one day to get all my ID replaced and a new bank card and such. But I will be back in class on tues. I hope you are doing well kristen cause It seems that she is the only person who reads this hahahaha jk jk. Anyways, have a great week and God bless!

This was one crazy week

So this week was full of stuff......good and bad. Lots and lots of stuff. It started out with a nice skating trip for fun. It was fun except for the fact I suck at skating. But some of the girls came and helped me which made me feel a little less embarassed, but I still looked like a first timer hahahaha. Anyways.......Here's a pict from it. Then it was time for me to do my chapel I had planned for a while. It went really well. Though I was quite nervous, I was still able to lead it well. In that chapel we found out some news from a student about a situation that came up at home that was not the least bit good. It was emotionally upsetting to see this girl cry with pain and confusion. We are still praying that the outcome would be successful.

The next day we had an exam that.....well we just won't talk about. That night the new york team met for dinner and a movie. The movie was showing us what we would be seeing when we went down for our missions trip in NY. It was really eye-opening, and kind of scary to think that there is such a huge risk going down there. A small chance of something happening due to the rules we have to follow, but the chance is still there. I am really looking forward to it though. Still trying to raise money for it. (hint hint)

Anyways, lately there has been a lot going on in my mind. I've had a lot of people that I have wanted to talk to and haven't had the chance really. It's kind of frustrating. But it's been cool cause I've been talking to my youth girls a lot. I can't help but laugh at some of the things that they are struggling, cause it brings me back to when I was their age, and makes me remember how I was also struggling with some of the same things. At that age, it feels like the world sucks, and everything in life sucks. And now I'm finally at the age where I can turn around and remember those times, and use my experiences as examples to the kids at my youth! It's pretty exciting to finally be able to do that in life.

This week we have a 24/4 week of prayer (dont ask why it's split up, it just is) we are hitting up Van and going to missions fest, and we have a few small things here and there again. I'm really excited because a bunch of people that I ABSOLUTELY LOVE are comming to camp/Im going to see them at missions fest. So that's pretty sweet! I'm really looking forward to this week/the weeks comming. Right now I'm sitting on the couch in the kaleo office with my leg up on a pillow cause my knee's being a poo-face. I've been here like all day cause I dont want to use it to much. Anyways, pray that I will stay alert, and do well with all my homework that is comming my way. I'm really worried about that. And also prayer that me and the other students who are going to my church would have an extra amount of energy for our youth. We are starting to slow down due to homework, classes, and everything else that is going on. so It would be good to get a bit more energy. Still waiting to read comments from ppl who actually read this.....it'd be good to know that you are still alive hahaha. Kay kay, love ya all and have a good week. Till next time.....

The feeling of progression

Well, I survived the week up at Mt, Washington without getting hurt. Though there are 4 others who cannot say the same. Haha Jayme and Malayne both broke an arm each, Deb got a concussion, and Aaron got 11 stitches in a cut finger! Not bad for 5 days huh! Anyways, keep them in prayer for a fast recovery and a good one too. Anyways, this week was amazing. our 5 day ski trip came just in time due to the mountain running out of snow. I was mostly skiing on ice and dirt which really sucked, but it was not horrable. But it was a really good trip. Monday we left bright and early and headed up island to the mountain. That was the day that Malayne broke her arm. Umm...oh yeah, I decided that it was finally time to learn how to ski properly, so I took a lesson for intermediate skiers. No one else showed up so I got a private lesson with a girl named kathryne. I was kind of scared to see how hard it would be to correct everything about my style of skiing, but she was really good with me. It helped so much. She was really interested in Kaleo and was glad to see that I was willing to do something that scared me. (AKA Go down a hill properly) But the lesson turned out to help emensly.

We had a chapel each night which was really good. On tues night we discussed our names that were given to us on the SALTS ship. Some people got theirs changed, others just needed some encouragement about their name. I decided to mention how my name "eager" suit me a lot, and how I've been growing into the name "nurturer" through taking care of Kaelin and some of my youth girls. But then I decided to take a huge step by asking to see who put a name on my prayer sheet. There was a name someone wanted to give me. I don't remember exactly what it was, but it was something like broken wreck or something. It really hurt the day I saw that on my sheet and needed do know why that person thought that was good for me. Shannon told me that it was her, and she described why. Unfortunately it was true. There were some others that said stuff to about how I tend to hide, and dont talk much or express my opinion. And yeah that's true. After growing up with friends that did not treat me well I decided that hiding from others would give me less of a chance of being judged. And I used to speak up when I was younger, but my friends would always shoot me down and tell me that my ideas were stupid. Therefore, I stopped giving my opinion and eventually have just stopped talking almost alltogether. I have found that wherever I go whether here at kaleo, with my friends back home, or even my parents, I'm not heard. I speak but I get ignored most of the time. Over the years I have just stopped talking loudly and now find it hard to talk at all. I think that's part of the problem with talking to Jordan. I can't seem to talk because I'm scared of him judging me. Anyways, so it was good to hear that there is some things that I should change now, and that people here want to help. Sorry for the venting there.

But all in all the names took to chapels to go through, and it was good to say things and hear what others have to say. Wednesday we changed up our routene a bit and most of us hit up some snowshoeing, while 4 went X-country skiing, and the injured stayed back in the house. This was my most favourite day of the whole week. I really was expecting it to suck, but I absolutely loved it! We built like mini snow caves and then jumped on them and colapsed them, we ran around throwing snow at eachother, or if we were Jim we were throwing hearts, we slid and fell down hills as we ran down the mountain (I ran into a tree at one point hahaha) and we just hung out and had a blast!!! I really enjoyed it, here are a few picts from that.

Then thurs and friday it was back to skiing. It was extremely tiring, but so much fun. I am thanking God for letting the snow stay, and for keeping the majority of us safe.

This upcomming week consists of one day of class, and a lot of homework time with a few random things stuck inside the week. I have a few people that I need to talk to so it would be good to get prayer for those conversations that they go well and are positive. And as well for this summer. My application has been handed in and I'm really scared to see what God does with me this summer. But other than that nothing is really new. I am missing home a bit, but that is to be expected when I am tired and have a lot to do here. Thank you all for your support so far through the forst semester. Keep me posted on what you are doing, and leave me a note if you wanna. I love reading comments. Love you all lots! Take care

2009!!!

Happy New Years Everyone! Well I hope you have all said goodbye to last year and are all feeling good about the year ahead. I know I am. I started off the new year at a wonderful place called staff retreat. Here's a picture from our banquet.
Already it's been an interesting experience for the year. The morning of Jan 1st me and 10 other guys jumped into the ocean for a sec for the polar beat swim. It had just snowed so the ground was freezing and it took like 5 hours to warm up fully again. It was torture! But I loved it. Later on that night I went on the ferry to visit a friend on the mainland. While seeing her God gave me a huge opportunity to help out her and her sister with a family situation that rose up. It was really cool that God brought me there at that time to be with her and her sister.

After a few days it was time to go back to Kaleo. I went home for a few hours to finnish my homework and see my parents one more time, unfortunately 5 min before I am about to head back to Kaleo, the malahat gets closed due to snow! So I got to spend an extra night at home then got picked up by the interns the next day. It's really good to be back.

During staff retreat, one of my youth girls came cause she was working a week in the summer time. It was cool to see her there. She's been struggling with life and it was really encouraging to see her come to camp instead of go to a party and find herself in trouble. She is applying for CIT which I think she could really use. Im so excited to see where God takes her this summer. She's been climbing out of a ditch and isn't doing to badly. It's been a blessing from God to watch her grow through her life experiences. It brings me back to when I was her age, and how I didnt think about the future much, how everything in the now was so dramatic, and growing closer to God was at the end of my life list. It's cool to see.

This week our classes started up again. Theology of Mission. Don't ask me what it's about cause I don't fully know yet hahaha. Pray for focus and energy for not just me but the whole class as we will have a LOT of homework to do soon. I'm excited to learn what this is about, our prof. seems pretty cool. other than that, not much is happening. Keep in touch everyone. I'd love to hear from you. God bless!!!

Snowflakes and Subway

Well right now I'm sitting in my room watching the snow fall after a good day at work. My dread of going back to work has so far ended up in being a really good experience! I've found that I have a lot more joy there and that I am able to handle the customers well, as well as remembering basicly everything. Being home has been really good. I've been able to see my friends, as well as lay around with my cat, and make money. The snow is making everything better because I LOVE snow!!!

This week was interesting but really good! Umm it started with a trip to the bungee zone and our kaleo christmas banquet, then to our interns sharing an AMAZING secret with everyone, to my birthday, to kaleo christmas and home. I can't tell you everything that happened because SO much good stuff happened. Below's a pict from kaleo christmas, the bungee zone, my birthday, and umm.... I think that's it. Ooh, the banquet! On my birthday at midnight, ny roommates set up an AMAZING (wow Im using capitals a lot haha) party for me. Cake, presents, a card, and everyone! I was really happy and felt SO amazingly loved. I was almost in tears because I have NEVER felt so loved on my birthday before. It was that moment, when I knew that everyone at kaleo loved me. That may sound crazy, but it's true!

When I came home, I got some unfortunate news about one of my youth girls. It ended up in her getting help and she should be ok. I dont want to mention any details, but it would be really good if you could keep her in your prayers for safety. Umm...but it was really good because another girl that I've been talking to a lot and I meen a lot, was able to see the power of prayer actually happen in front of her because of this incident. It was so thrilling to see God work through her in this situation!!! It really made me happy.

This week consists of me working at subway and hopfully seeing more friends. We shal see what happens this week, especially with this snow! I'm really excited to be home, and though I miss my kaleo family, I'm not to sad. Hope everyone has an amazing week, I'd love to hear from some of you too! God bless.

Christmas is upon us!!!

Well I'm pretty sure I have never been excited for christmas before my birthday untill this year. Jordan has forced christmas music on us in the office and in the vans, I have wrapped all my gifts for here and I'm waiting to put them under the tree, and Yes kaleo has a live christmas tree!!!! We got to go to a tree farm and pick out our perfect christmas tree! It's a really nice one. Here's a picture of it all decorated.

This week was a busey week. I worked on my papers quite a bit, umm.....Ooh we had another guys and girls night. It was pretty sweet. We went for a hike, and went to the pool, and had coffee, and then went to Jim's house and chilled and ate food and ahhhh it was so relaxing. Ya it was pretty sweet. Here is the pict of us from our hike.
So to talk about my ministry, this week was our last youth for the year of 2008. This comming friday we will all be taking off in different directions and going home for christmas. It was good to be able to chill with the kids, we didnt do much, but it was still fun. Slowly I find my heart melting for those kids because I love them so much. I love just being able to talk to them and see where they are at in life. I hope to see a few on sunday and say goodbye till the new year. I'm going to miss them. Ooh we also had our kaleo 6 tallent show sat night. If you check our K6 blog you can see some photos of that. http://kaleosix.blogspot.com/ This next week should be AMAZING!!! on monday we get to go to bungey zone and watch everyone do something crazy, (im doing a zip line some are doing other things) and we have our christmas banquet with the staff, Tues we are doing HOMEWORK!!!, on wed I get to have the honors of being legal all over the world (aka I turn 21) thurs is our kaleo christmas morning!!!!!(so excited for that), and then friday we all say goodbye and head home! It's pretty sweet. I'm going to be very sad to say goodbye to people here for 3 weeks, but I'll be so occupied with work when I'm home that I'll be able to keep myself busey. Anyways, hope everyone else has a good week. Pray that I get my papers done, cause I'm really struggling with them. Other than that, happy holidays!!!